Debbie update...

Debbie update... She's in surgery as I write. The past few days have seen her steadily improve, in the sense that swelling in her knee kept decreasing and her pain was being better managed.

I've mentioned before that the people in the hospital have been much more caring and attentive than we're used to from our experiences in San Diego. This mostly manifests in little things to make Debbie feel better. A good example from this morning: for 10 hours pre-surgery she couldn't eat or drink anything. With the pain meds she's getting, that meant she had a bad case of dry mouth. She's been through this before, so she knew what to expect. It's uncomfortable, but noting more. Here they brought her little sponges on a stick, moistened with a glycerin compound that made her dry mouth disappear. She didn't even have to ask for it - they just brought it to her. Dozens of little gestures like that added up to a big difference.

This morning I experienced a couple of these personally. As I left her side when she was being wheeled into the OR, a young woman walked beside me. Her only purpose was to make sure I understood what would happen next, where I should wait, and that I wasn't anxious. In all the too many times I've left Debbie in the OR, nothing remotely like this has ever happened before. Then just a few minutes ago the phone in Debbie's room ( where I'm waiting for her) rang, and I answered it. On the other end was the OR nurse, giving me an update about Debbie's surgery (all good). Again, I've never had anything like that happen before.